Hawks, Hawks and More Hawks

The last week or so has been a great mixture of relaxation and fun times watching hawks. We've also had friends dropping in to visit and share the experience, which has been great. I've seen about 30 species of birds, including White-faced Ibis, Golden Eagle, Bullock's Oriole and Black-throated Sparrows.

Yesterday was the day I've been waiting for, as over 1700 Swainson's were counted in the valley. Of those, I saw about 750 in three different locations during the day. It was really amazing. While I keep referencing numbers, that is mostly to convey the magnitude of this incredible migration from Argentina to Alaska. Even the days when we see only a few hawks are enjoyable and can be memorable for their beauty and simple pleasures, such as seeing the jackrabbit in the photo to the right.

This morning I went to Desert Gardens in Coyote Canyon with 2 other birders and we counted 450+ as they migrated overhead through the pass. The hawks have a behaviour called a migratory bow where their wings are bowed to make them more aerodynamic and it is beautiful to see. We were each scanning a different direction and I saw what I thought was a hawk or Turkey Vulture, but when seen through a scope turned out to be a Golden Eagle, which was particularly thrilling.



Turkey Vultures sunning

Additionally, we saw 7 other species of migrating raptors. It was hard work in the hot sun looking almost directly overhead for 2 hours, complete with pesky little gnats. but completely worth it. One of the best days ever! Also driving back into Coyote Canyon, we saw 2 Wild Turkey, which are rare in the Park.

Another enjoyable aspect of this experience is getting acquainted with other birders. Folks fly in from all over - Virginia, Canada, England - to see the hawks. Most are way more experienced than I am, but are very generous in sharing their knowledge, so I am learning a lot and improving my birding skills.

I'm having a heck of a time dealing with the positioning of these photos so be sure to scroll down to see all the photos. Eventually, I plan on putting my photos on Picasa and including a link for those who want to see them. In the meantime, it is what it is! I have to remember I'm no longer having an annual performance evaluation, haha!

Swainson's Hawks





Wild Turkeys - unusual in the Park























 

































HawkWatch in Borrego Springs

Borrego Valley HawkWatch

Wade, Keeva and I arrived in Borrego on March 18th at about 2pm and will be camping here with our trailer until March 31st! One of the main reasons we are here is so that I can participate in the HawkWatch For more information, click on the link above. Swainson's hawks migrate through the Borrego Valley in large numbers from February until April. As many as 1000+ hawks have been reported in one day. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the HawkWatch, there are a group of folks who count and keep records of the hawk's migration. They have a Morning Site and an Evening Site. So lucky me, I will get to participate in about 5 hrs. of birding every day!

This morning I drove up in to Coyote Canyon with one of the HawkWatch leaders and saw 31 hawks "streaming" through the canyon, headed north. Very exciting. Also during the day I saw a Black-throated Sparrow, Audubon's Warbler, Roadrunner, Lawrence's Goldfinch, Verdin, Redtail Hawk, Kestrel and Quail.

There really are 3 hawks in this photo

Coyote Canyon

Near Lake Henshaw

At the Evening Site tonight while waiting for the birds to come in, I put my binoculars up to check out a little black spot and was thrilled to see a "glassfull" of  50-75 hawks! Needless to say it was fun to alert the group and be the one who earns the "hot fudge sundae". We watched as the birds dropped down in to the Ellis Tree Farm area, pretty much out of sight. About 15 minutes later, in groups of 5 or 10, most of them flew back in our direction, directly overhead and roosted in a group of trees nearby. The Swainson's were silhouetted against a colorful sunset - a beautiful and inspiring sight. I'm including a picture of this, even though the birds are just black specks!

 A wonderful first day with lots to follow! We are having a great time!

ps.Please excuse the type and photo placement inconsistencies; I'm still learning how to use Blogger s.

Road Runner